Tools & Wizards About Us
thestar.ca screenshot

Report Summary

  • 15

    Performance

    Renders faster than
    27% of other websites

  • 90

    Accessibility

    Visual factors better than
    that of 74% of websites

  • 75

    Best Practices

    More advanced features
    available than in
    35% of websites

  • 86

    SEO

    Google-friendlier than
    60% of websites

thestar.ca

Breaking News - Headlines & Top Stories | The Star

Page Load Speed

2.9 sec in total

First Response

66 ms

Resources Loaded

2.3 sec

Page Rendered

522 ms

thestar.ca screenshot

About Website

Visit thestar.ca now to see the best up-to-date The Star content for Canada and also check out these interesting facts you probably never knew about thestar.ca

thestar.com is Canada’s largest online news site. Live news, investigations, politics, sports and the heartbeat of Toronto, Canada's largest city.

Visit thestar.ca

Key Findings

We analyzed Thestar.ca page load time and found that the first response time was 66 ms and then it took 2.8 sec to load all DOM resources and completely render a web page. This is a poor result, as 55% of websites can load faster.

Performance Metrics

thestar.ca performance score

15

Measured Metrics

name

value

score

weighting

FCP (First Contentful Paint)

Value7.2 s

1/100

10%

LCP (Largest Contentful Paint)

Value22.8 s

0/100

25%

SI (Speed Index)

Value21.3 s

0/100

10%

TBT (Total Blocking Time)

Value9,790 ms

0/100

30%

CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift)

Value0.009

100/100

15%

TTI (Time to Interactive)

Value44.5 s

0/100

10%

Network Requests Diagram

thestar.ca

66 ms

www.thestar.com

26 ms

media.js

12 ms

adframe.js

17 ms

jquery.min.js

22 ms

Our browser made a total of 108 requests to load all elements on the main page. We found that 1% of them (1 request) were addressed to the original Thestar.ca, 29% (31 requests) were made to Thestar.com and 7% (8 requests) were made to Securepubads.g.doubleclick.net. The less responsive or slowest element that took the longest time to load (1.3 sec) relates to the external source Google-analytics.com.

Page Optimization Overview & Recommendations

Page size can be reduced by 828.2 kB (46%)

Content Size

1.8 MB

After Optimization

980.9 kB

  • HTML
  • Images
  • JavaScript
  • CSS

In fact, the total size of Thestar.ca main page is 1.8 MB. This result falls beyond the top 1M of websites and identifies a large and not optimized web page that may take ages to load. 75% of websites need less resources to load and that’s why Accessify’s recommendations for optimization and resource minification can be helpful for this project. Images take 854.6 kB which makes up the majority of the site volume.

HTML Optimization

-82%

Potential reduce by 118.0 kB

  • Original 144.1 kB
  • After minification 126.6 kB
  • After compression 26.1 kB

HTML content can be minified and compressed by a website’s server. The most efficient way is to compress content using GZIP which reduces data amount travelling through the network between server and browser. This page needs HTML code to be minified as it can gain 17.6 kB, which is 12% of the original size. It is highly recommended that content of this web page should be compressed using GZIP, as it can save up to 118.0 kB or 82% of the original size.

Image Optimization

-18%

Potential reduce by 150.6 kB

  • Original 854.6 kB
  • After minification 704.0 kB

Image size optimization can help to speed up a website loading time. The chart above shows the difference between the size before and after optimization. Obviously, The Star needs image optimization as it can save up to 150.6 kB or 18% of the original volume. The most popular and efficient tools for JPEG and PNG image optimization are Jpegoptim and PNG Crush.

JavaScript Optimization

-65%

Potential reduce by 420.9 kB

  • Original 649.3 kB
  • After minification 631.6 kB
  • After compression 228.4 kB

It’s better to minify JavaScript in order to improve website performance. The diagram shows the current total size of all JavaScript files against the prospective JavaScript size after its minification and compression. It is highly recommended that all JavaScript files should be compressed and minified as it can save up to 420.9 kB or 65% of the original size.

CSS Optimization

-86%

Potential reduce by 138.7 kB

  • Original 161.1 kB
  • After minification 160.3 kB
  • After compression 22.4 kB

CSS files minification is very important to reduce a web page rendering time. The faster CSS files can load, the earlier a page can be rendered. Thestar.ca needs all CSS files to be minified and compressed as it can save up to 138.7 kB or 86% of the original size.

Requests Breakdown

Number of requests can be reduced by 61 (60%)

Requests Now

101

After Optimization

40

  • AJAX
  • Images
  • JavaScript
  • CSS

The browser has sent 101 CSS, Javascripts, AJAX and image requests in order to completely render the main page of The Star. We recommend that multiple CSS and JavaScript files should be merged into one by each type, as it can help reduce assets requests from 44 to 1 for JavaScripts and as a result speed up the page load time.

Network Requests Diagram

thestar.ca

thestar.ca

66 ms

www.thestar.com

www.thestar.com

26 ms

media.js

media.js

12 ms

adframe.js

adframe.js

17 ms

jquery.min.js

jquery.min.js

22 ms

topjs.min.js

topjs.min.js

18 ms

mainlib.min.css

mainlib.min.css

31 ms

atm_code.js

atm_code.js

18 ms

s_code.js

s_code.js

43 ms

api.js

api.js

1333 ms

BrightcoveExperiences.js

BrightcoveExperiences.js

1326 ms

APIModules_all.js

APIModules_all.js

1331 ms

mainlib.min.js

mainlib.min.js

1331 ms

in.js

in.js

1298 ms

fbevents.js

fbevents.js

1301 ms

desktop-promo-banner2.jpg

desktop-promo-banner2.jpg

1296 ms

blank.gif

blank.gif

1297 ms

StarTouch_126x428_Static_mar16.jpg

StarTouch_126x428_Static_mar16.jpg

1298 ms

Linwood_126x214.jpg

Linwood_126x214.jpg

1299 ms

WL_Contests_RHR_New.jpg

WL_Contests_RHR_New.jpg

1296 ms

StarAuctions_Jan30_onwards.jpg

StarAuctions_Jan30_onwards.jpg

1298 ms

NYT_TheStar_126x214_july8-july14.jpg

NYT_TheStar_126x214_july8-july14.jpg

1297 ms

thestar-logo.png

thestar-logo.png

73 ms

secureAnonymousFramework

secureAnonymousFramework

144 ms

141 ms

145 ms

sprites.png

sprites.png

105 ms

all.js

all.js

251 ms

generic.js

generic.js

77 ms

widgets.js

widgets.js

75 ms

plusone.js

plusone.js

210 ms

beacon.js

beacon.js

107 ms

tt-ec2f62c81490e1293397a7997058b2325b2cbf48f88defa2df5f1c0b93fa0e81.js

tt-ec2f62c81490e1293397a7997058b2325b2cbf48f88defa2df5f1c0b93fa0e81.js

111 ms

ga.js

ga.js

49 ms

vrs.js

vrs.js

110 ms

p.js

p.js

74 ms

mystar.js

mystar.js

121 ms

gpt.js

gpt.js

68 ms

upgrade_flash_player2.gif

upgrade_flash_player2.gif

19 ms

maple-syrup2.jpg.size.xlarge.closeup.jpg

maple-syrup2.jpg.size.xlarge.closeup.jpg

37 ms

earth-hour-oleniuk.jpg.size.xsmall.closeup.jpg

earth-hour-oleniuk.jpg.size.xsmall.closeup.jpg

38 ms

photos-ci-freesyria.jpg.size.xsmall.closeup.jpg

photos-ci-freesyria.jpg.size.xsmall.closeup.jpg

37 ms

abdeslam-housejpg.jpg.size.xsmall.closeup.jpg

abdeslam-housejpg.jpg.size.xsmall.closeup.jpg

37 ms

web-photo1.jpg.size.xsmall.closeup.jpg

web-photo1.jpg.size.xsmall.closeup.jpg

37 ms

shergo-kurdi.jpg.size.xsmall.closeup.jpg

shergo-kurdi.jpg.size.xsmall.closeup.jpg

37 ms

protest4.jpg.size.xsmall.closeup.jpg

protest4.jpg.size.xsmall.closeup.jpg

38 ms

rob-ford-hospital.jpg.size.small.closeup.jpg

rob-ford-hospital.jpg.size.small.closeup.jpg

39 ms

hillarydionneuntitledpng.png.size.small.closeup.png

hillarydionneuntitledpng.png.size.small.closeup.png

39 ms

image1.png.size.xxlarge.closeup.png

image1.png.size.xxlarge.closeup.png

91 ms

photos-ci-skydome8.jpg.size.xxlarge.closeup.jpg

photos-ci-skydome8.jpg.size.xxlarge.closeup.jpg

73 ms

george-finn.jpg.size.xsmall.closeup.jpg

george-finn.jpg.size.xsmall.closeup.jpg

38 ms

aleppo-main-art.jpg.size.xxlarge.closeup.jpg

aleppo-main-art.jpg.size.xxlarge.closeup.jpg

72 ms

Ellie_logo2013W.jpg.size.medium1.original.jpg

Ellie_logo2013W.jpg.size.medium1.original.jpg

72 ms

s28003053108695

s28003053108695

75 ms

__utm.gif

__utm.gif

44 ms

pubads_impl_82.js

pubads_impl_82.js

25 ms

o2.eyereturn.com

o2.eyereturn.com

147 ms

pixel

pixel

127 ms

thestar.com

thestar.com

19 ms

vrt.outbrain.com

vrt.outbrain.com

157 ms

vrp.outbrain.com

vrp.outbrain.com

155 ms

3366159.html

3366159.html

89 ms

ptrack-v0.4.10-engaged-time.js

ptrack-v0.4.10-engaged-time.js

52 ms

mystar.css

mystar.css

104 ms

settings.js

settings.js

143 ms

weather.js

weather.js

142 ms

ads

ads

156 ms

container.html

container.html

51 ms

67 ms

oct.js

oct.js

41 ms

39 ms

cb=gapi.loaded_0

cb=gapi.loaded_0

51 ms

pixel

pixel

45 ms

adsct

adsct

188 ms

adsct

adsct

54 ms

169 ms

cminit2

cminit2

52 ms

178 ms

179 ms

149 ms

33 ms

sprites-mini.png

sprites-mini.png

53 ms

xd_arbiter.php

xd_arbiter.php

246 ms

xd_arbiter.php

xd_arbiter.php

465 ms

Pug

Pug

60 ms

rum

rum

161 ms

17833181557417789956

17833181557417789956

103 ms

ads

ads

102 ms

osd.js

osd.js

40 ms

moatad.js

moatad.js

53 ms

tap.php

tap.php

22 ms

101 ms

pixel.gif

pixel.gif

68 ms

sync

sync

22 ms

6195421524339670993

6195421524339670993

18 ms

ads

ads

37 ms

rum

rum

36 ms

imgad

imgad

21 ms

ads

ads

34 ms

17 ms

mapuser

mapuser

7 ms

ads

ads

45 ms

12066952190265159223

12066952190265159223

21 ms

ads

ads

43 ms

ads

ads

39 ms

imgad

imgad

18 ms

ads

ads

39 ms

imgad

imgad

22 ms

Accessibility Review

thestar.ca accessibility score

90

Accessibility Issues

Contrast

These are opportunities to improve the legibility of your content.

Impact

Issue

High

Background and foreground colors do not have a sufficient contrast ratio.

Names and labels

These are opportunities to improve the semantics of the controls in your application. This may enhance the experience for users of assistive technology, like a screen reader.

Impact

Issue

High

Image elements do not have [alt] attributes

Navigation

These are opportunities to improve keyboard navigation in your application.

Impact

Issue

High

Some elements have a [tabindex] value greater than 0

Best Practices

thestar.ca best practices score

75

Areas of Improvement

Trust and Safety

Impact

Issue

High

Does not use HTTPS

Low

Ensure CSP is effective against XSS attacks

User Experience

Impact

Issue

High

Serves images with low resolution

General

Impact

Issue

Low

Detected JavaScript libraries

High

Browser errors were logged to the console

High

Missing source maps for large first-party JavaScript

SEO Factors

thestar.ca SEO score

86

Search Engine Optimization Advices

Crawling and Indexing

To appear in search results, crawlers need access to your app.

Impact

Issue

High

Links are not crawlable

Content Best Practices

Format your HTML in a way that enables crawlers to better understand your app’s content.

Impact

Issue

High

Image elements do not have [alt] attributes

Mobile Friendly

Make sure your pages are mobile friendly so users don’t have to pinch or zoom in order to read the content pages. [Learn more](https://developers.google.com/search/mobile-sites/).

Impact

Issue

High

Document uses legible font sizes

Language and Encoding

  • Language Detected

    EN

  • Language Claimed

    EN

  • Encoding

    UTF-8

Language claimed in HTML meta tag should match the language actually used on the web page. Otherwise Thestar.ca can be misinterpreted by Google and other search engines. Our service has detected that English is used on the page, and it matches the claimed language. Our system also found out that Thestar.ca main page’s claimed encoding is utf-8. Use of this encoding format is the best practice as the main page visitors from all over the world won’t have any issues with symbol transcription.

Social Sharing Optimization

thestar.ca

Open Graph data is detected on the main page of The Star. This is the best way to make the web page social media friendly. Here is how it looks like on Facebook: